The long awaited Championship Blog

Sorry it has been so long. All is very busy here in the wonderful world of Winters.

The Championships were great! We all had such a fab time and we all did really well. To see the photo's from the annual show click here. All were taken by Scott Stanley.

My week started off great, then went bad, then went back to great. My warm up class and USDF freestyle class on Thursday were nice rides. Except MP was a little spooky especially in my freestyle ride. She still hasn't gotten over the sound system screeching from CNDC in Sept. But my tests were good enough to earn my a 2nd place and a third in two big classes. And the freestyle class had pros and matures in it so I was very happy.


Friday brought a different set of circumstances. It was windy, I got nervous and I paid for it. I didn't properly pin down my stock tie so right after I halted and saluted it flew up and hit me in the face. And also spooked MP so she lurched forward. First boo boo. Then I got so flustered by my stock tie that I went the wrong direction at C and started riding the wrong test. Big boo boo, minus 2 points. Then as I was doing the walk work I tried to fix my tie and over shot the letter I was supposed to walk to. Third boo boo. Then in the canter work I started half passing too late. Fourth boo boo. So needless to say I rode a crappy test and my score showed. I think I received a 62% on that test. That placed me 9th in the semi final.

The day being a disaster ended with one final disaster in the way of my CDS freestyle. The wind really picked up and the judges tent was flapping. So I could only ride in the lower 3/4s of the court. This made my timing off with my music so it wasn't pretty. I placed 7th overall in the class. Oh well!

Saturday was a new day but the pressure was still getting to me. The fact that you only have one chance to ride these tests meant that I over analysed everything to my own detriment. My USDF class on Sat started off well, but I rode conservatively and then when it came time for the halt rein back, I blew straight through it. Minus 2 points. But the test was good, and I felt good about it. I watched Eva's test and she did the same thing so we were declared the no halt rein back queens. Even with the errors and conservative performance I placed 5th and Eva placed fourth, so we got to ride in the honor round together. That was fun!!

When I woke up on Sunday I could tell that it would be a good day. For the first time that entire weekend, I felt confident. When I was tacking up, warming up and then right before I entered the arena I had a clear tactful mind. I knew what I wanted MP to look like and I knew how to ride again. The test was great. Besides a few little things like not halting square, the test was darn near as good as it could be. Everyone else thought so too. The test was the final for the CDS Championship and it was good enough to move us up from 9th to 7th.

The rest of our groups did great as well. Katie D was the USDF 1st level Champion and was Reserve Champion for CDS. Katie A placed 7th in the CDS Championship class and Eva placed 9th. We had a blast and many of our family members and friends joined us. I can't wait until next year!

Post is coming!

I swear - I'm just exhausted and need to get everything organized. I had all plans to blog each day but that was wishful thinking. More to come about champs......

First scores are in.....

Yesterday was a great day! Eva and I had our 3-2 warm up class first thing in the morning so the horses were nice and fresh. The class was big, 15 horses and riders. Eva's test was super except for a few bobbles which cost her a few points so she got a 62% and 5th place. My test felt really good, just a few things need improving for the Championship class which begins today. I got a 64% which landed me in the reserve slot. Not a bad start!




Our USDF Region 7 3rd level freestyle class was yesterday afternoon and there were 9 rider and horse combinations. The freestyle classes are not divided into ametures or pros, we are compete against each other so the competition is stiff. MP's warm up was great. She felt the best she's ever felt, but when she got in the ring she got a little spooky and tight so I had some bobbles. Even so I earned a 69% which placed me third for the regionals. Not bad for our first year out! The awards ceremony is today so I'll have pictures from that later.


Our other barnmates are doing well also. Katey A with Andy had a good ride, but there was a demon squirrel at the end of the arena that gave him the spooks so he was obedient but tight in his ride. He'll do better today. Katie D an Willoughby had a fantastic ride and got first place in the warm up class!! The class was huge so that is quite an accomplishment. Both Katies will start their championship classes today along with Eva and I.




Above: Katey A & Andy; Below: Katie D & Will

Today we start the first half of the state championships. We ride 3-2 today and 3-3 on Sunday. I also have my state championship freestyle class so think good thoughts.

3-2 warm up click here
USDF Region 7 3rd level Freestyle click here

We're here!!!!!

The show grounds

We made it! All three trailers rolled into the LA Equestrian Center yesterday around 1:00 and then we feverishly unloaded and set up camp. After that I had to get ready because my freestyle warm up was scheduled for 4:45 and I wanted ample time to cruise the venue.

That is a lot of stuff!

The horses took priority

Camp almost set up

There are four of us from team Eckstein showing. Eva and me at third level and Katie D and Katey A at first. Ellen will be coaching us all weekend. Yesterday was just the warm up but today the show starts. I have one of my freestyle classes this afternoon. I'll do another blog and report on that later.



Looking fab
MP was a little spicy during the warm up on Wed. She actually kicked up her heels a few time which made me laugh. But she feels super. She definitely has her game face on.


MP feels good

There are some incredible horses here. The competition is stiff and there is a lot of it. Our class has at least twenty riders in it which for dressage is a lot. But it is wonderful to be here with our good friends and I think our horses all look fabulous!

The Katie/ey's with the view

To watch my freestyle warm up click here

Paso de Robles.......

Famous sunsets

We're here at Ellen's and things are going fabulous. We got here yesterday in time for a little group ride and needless to say it was not little. There were 6 horses in the ring and we were all trying to get our groove on. It was tons of fun a great to have the group back together.

Today we had actual lessons and just tried to fine tune everything. Here's a little video. LA here we come......

Odie and her new man

ST & MP cruzin'

Test Blog From the Road

S&S decked out Kentucky Derby style!

We are in the Santa Ynez Valley this weekend at our friends wedding. It provided the perfect opportunity to write a test blog from the road!

Irk, eek, WOW....Mr. toad's wild ride

Susan, MP, Christiane Noelting and "the saddle."

I had a fascinating show weekend a week ago. I've been contemplating my post and digesting the happenings of the weekend, which is why I'm so late in writing.

About two weeks ago I found out that, according to my scores, I was ranked number 1 in the US for third level adult amateur. This was huge and I couldn't believe it. But when I went to check my ranking, officially, I wasn't ranked. It turns out that 6 of my best scores didn't count because of my memberships, so I needed three scores (all over 66%) to be officially ranked by USDF. In order to do this, I had to show in two shows in one weekend. Exhausting!!

The weekend started out with a thump on Friday where I earned a 64% at 3-3. Enough to give us first place in the glass as well as 10 points towards CNDC Dressage Derby. If you qualify for the derby, names are drawn out of hats and you win prizes. So it was a bitter sweet victory. I got the point for the derby, and first place in the class, but I didn't get a 66%.

The next day was the actual derby and you have to be present in show attire to claim your prize. So I decided to also ride my freestyle for practice. This turned out to be the worst idea I've has so far, because the sound system went our and made this terrible screeching noise, which scared MP half-to-death and resulted in the worst ride we've had this year. She was tight, scared, and I should have just scratched. I was also livid about the sound system because I had asked for a sound check at 9:00, 2 hours before my ride, and they decided to do it just before I rode. Bad show protocol. I won't be riding my freestyle there ever again.

Victory lap - MP was hot trot!

Even though I was upset, the derby followed my freestyle so I had to stay on MP and I had to just get over it. Which was good because my name was the first drawn out of the hat and I won a $3600 saddle!!! Thank you Schleese! I also won a Skagen watch which is my favorite watch company. So, although riding my freestyle was a mistake and ruined my freestyle ranking, I still came out on top!

On Sunday, we headed to our final show of the weekend. The judge was a toughy, and I was really worried about my scores. My first test was pretty good, but MP was scared of the judges stand - a little PTSD from the day before. My first score was a 66% and landed me in 2nd place. A very good score considering the PTSD and tough judging. But I needed a 68% to claim USDF #1 AA at third level. No pressure.

I gave MP a good break before my next warm up and I really just tried to focus on relaxing. She was great in the warm up, but felt a little tired. When I got in the show ring she felt great. My ride was going superb until we got to the right half-pass to the flying change - both co-efficients (20 points rather than 10). The half-pass was OK, but just before I asked for the change, she spooked at the judges stand and the change was late. 8 points out of 20. BUMMER! That also gave us lower mark for submission. So I got a 64%. I thought it should have been a little higher, but the spooking is what it is.

I'm not sure where that landed me in the rankings, but it doesn't matter anymore. The fact is, when I didn't know about the rankings I was much more relaxed and my scores reflected that. When I got uptight about getting a specific score, I lost focus on why I'm doing this. Because I love it!